The method of picture compression consists:in processing a current displaced pixel block in the picture to be compressed by using a network of N neurons, 1 to N, disposed in a single plane, each neuron having a number of inputs equal to the dimension of the blocks extracted from the picture, and such that, after a learning phase during which the network has auto-organised so that the neurons represent most probable input values, each neuron receives on its inputs, at the same instant, the pixels of the current block and outputs a signal, or potential, d.sub.j, which is positive and is all the lower the nearer is the state of the corresponding neuron j to the state of the inputs e.sub.i,in coding the current pixel block through a code associated with the neuron j whose potential d.sub.j is minimal.The invention applies, in particular, to the compression of television pictures.